Category Archives: News & Events

Poole Zombie Fest is a free, family-friendly day of spook-tacular activities taking place within Falkland Square, in the Dolphin Shopping Centre. All visitors are encouraged to wear zombie fancy dress and visit the special effects team and the face painting stand, where experts will be on hand throughout the day to add the finishing touches to costumes, ahead of the Zombie Parade.

The free-to-enter Zombie Parade will begin at Falkland Square at approximately 4pm and will travel along the high street and end at the Town Quay at 4.45pm. Prizes will be awarded for the ‘Worst Dressed’ zombies.

A pop-up, zombie-themed escape room will be constructed in the centre of the Square and will immerse participants into the world of the undead and provide a frightfully good time to all those who dare to enter.

Other family-friendly activities include a zombie photo area which will provide photo mementos from the event, and fair rides for visitors of all ages to enjoy. Craft and food stands will be positioned along the high street and throughout Falkland Square, serving treats throughout the day.

Justin Hundley-Appleton, BID manager, said: “We’re really excited about the Poole Zombie Fest coming to town. It’s a great opportunity for our local businesses to pool together and show visitors what we have to offer. There will be all sorts of deals and discounts for those in fancy dress on the day as well as seeing what the different traders have to offer.

“I’m really looking forward to judging the ‘Worst Dressed’ zombie costume competition and seeing how creative everyone gets with their costumes, it’ll be a great day out for all the family.”

Poole BID will be decorating the high street of Poole next month as the Poole in Bloom initiative returns ahead of the summer holidays and peak tourism season.

212 planters will be installed throughout the high street and town centre in the second week of June. The varieties of flowers being planted include geraniums, verbenas, lobelias, begonias, fuchsias, petunias and impatiens.

Justin Hundley-Appleton, Poole BID manager, commented: “With the summer season fast approaching, we’re keen to get the town ready for the influx of tourists to the area. The floral decorations have been so well received previously that we’re excited to be bringing them back next month.”

The planters will be in place for everyone to enjoy all summer.

Maritime bunting has also been strung up throughout the town in time for the Poole Maritime Festival taking place throughout June.

Locomotivation is an established training provider based in Poole, delivering Apprenticeship and other staff development opportunities across all service-based industries.

Locomotivation have partnered with the Serco Group to deliver the Skills Support for the Workforce (SSW) programme, developed to upskill employees within all businesses in Dorset. We provide recognised accredited qualifications and bespoke training courses to enhance your employees’ skills, increase the competitiveness of your business and boost the local economy.

Businesses can select full qualifications or mix and match individual units that are directly relevant to your current training requirements. The courses range from a few hours’ training, to units of NVQ or other qualifications. Because the programme is co-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Education & Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), you can support your workforce at no extra cost to your business.

The Poole BID Big Clean returns for a second year to Poole town centre from Monday, April 23 until Saturday, April 28.

Poole BID is encouraging volunteers who are aged 16 and above to lend a hand in helping to give Poole town centre its annual spring clean. There are many jobs available to those who are willing to donate their time, including weeding flowerbeds, painting, throwing away litter and helping to ensure Poole is a clean and safe town to all those who visit.

Justin Hundley-Appleton, BID manager, commented: “We were so pleased with the amount of people who supported last year’s Big Clean we decided to run the event again, and we hope the community will once again come together to help give Poole a spring clean in the lead up to the summer season.

“This is a great event for friends and families to get involved with, and any professional tradespeople willing to offer their time would be most welcomed.

“We’re working really hard this year to make sure Poole stays on the map as a must-visit tourist destination. We have so much to offer and we hope local businesses will support this initiative and do their part in helping to tidy up the town.

Poole BID will be offering daily prizes for participating businesses and offering a ‘Best Spring Clean Shop Front’ award at the end of the month. There is no need to fill in any entry forms; all businesses will be included in the competition.

Poole BID has also arranged equipment for accessing hard-to-reach areas such as gutters and high level windows. Any businesses interested in using this equipment should contact info@poolebid.com for more information.

Cllr Karen Rampton, Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Housing and Communities, Borough of Poole, said: “We want Poole to be a safe and welcoming place for everyone who lives in, works in or visits our town. We are aware that Poole Town Centre and in particular the High Street, Bus Station, Dolphin Centre, Old Orchard and The Quay, has the highest levels of anti-social behaviour in the borough. We have carefully considered how we can deal with this issue and at the same time address concerns raised by various stakeholders including businesses and community groups in the area. The introduction of the PSPO will complement a number of other tools we can use to effectively tackle this behaviour.

“The PSPO will not be used to target any specific group, such as those people sleeping rough. The council proactively works with individuals to encourage them to use the full range of support available from the council and local charities. Whether this is working with individuals who have a problem with drugs or alcohol, supporting individuals into housing, offering a hot meal and healthcare or providing intensive daily support to enable an individual to sustain a tenancy, we will continue to engage and support wherever possible our most vulnerable members of our community.”

The council and the police already use a variety of methods to address these issues with some success. However these powers do not allow council officers to move people away from the area in which they are causing harm. The PSPO will allow this to happen, offering some respite to those adversely affected.

Initially a soft approach to enforcement will be carried out. The council and the police will actively engage with individuals to explain the purpose of the PSPO, the implications if it is not followed and encourage changes to their behaviour without the need to take enforcement action. They will also offer advice and support relevant to the individual’s needs. It is not intended that any fines are issued during this period.

Justin Hundley-Appleton, Poole BID manager, said: “The businesses of Poole and Poole BID are enthusiastic about making Poole an attractive and vibrant place for our residents and visitors of all ages.

“The BID supports the prohibitions outlined within the PSPO and would encourage anyone affected by the order to seek advice and support from the council and charities available in the area.

“Ultimately, we want Poole to continue to be a safe place for all, including those who require our help, and backing from local businesses ensures that this happens for many years to come.“

Notes for editors

The PSPO was implemented on Monday 16 April 2018 for a period of three years.

Dorset Police records show there were 1738 incidents of ASB from April 2016 to March 2017. There have been 1408 incidents between April 2017 and December 2017.

High levels of anti-social behaviour occur in the High Street, Bus Station, Dolphin Centre, Old Orchard and The Quay. In addition Sterte and Tatnum experience specific problems with anti-social behaviour, mainly connected with drugs and street drinking.

GetSet for Growth brings high quality, professional resources to your company. Our finance and marketing experts provide invaluable commercial insights and direction, drawn from first hand experience, to help you grow your bottom line.

We help you strengthen your business and marketing strategies in order to generate more money from more customers, and work with you to secure finance to invest in your growth.

Our service has already supported over 5,200 businesses across the UK that are looking to grow, who collectively turnover £1.5 billion. This support is available to you in East Dorset thanks to funding from the European Regional Development Fund and partners.

The Dorset Business Growth Partnership is designed to help any Dorset county-based SME become more competitive. Dedicated strands of activity will include pre-start and start-up support, improving companies’ digital capabilities, management and leadership skills and scope for internationalisation. Access to finance will be delivered through grants and loans alongside advice, mentoring, training and events. The three-year SME Competitiveness programme to be run until March 2020, funded by the European Regional Development Fund, is led by WSX Enterprise and the Dorset Growth Hub with a range of support partners.

We at Poole Business Savings team, are starting a waste initiative, which aims to implement a single waste disposal scheme across the BID. The focus is to achieve impressive cost and environmental benefits. Currently there are more than a dozen waste collectors operating across the BID community. BID members are experiencing various levels of service and paying different costs.

The first stage of the process is to assess what the current situation is across all businesses.

Please take a few minutes to complete the following short survey, which will help us ascertain your needs and enable us to put together the best waste and recycling scheme possible.

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HAVE YOUR SAY

We want to hear from all 512 businesses in the BID area regarding the proposed business plan. Please tell us your thoughts, suggestions and comments on the priorities and projects to make sure it will work for you.